Overview:

- The state House budget would cut $10.2 million and 136 employees from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Parks and Recreation Division.
- If signed into law, the cuts "could result in fewer rangers, increased response time, and impact visitor experience" on Belle Isle, says Michigan's parks and recreation chief.
- If the state fails to pass a budget by the Oct. 1 deadline, state parks like Belle Isle could close or have limited access.

As Michigan careens toward an Oct. 1 budget deadline, Belle Isle is caught in the middle of the state’s political gridlock. 

The island park, under state management since 2014, would close or have limited access in the event of a government shutdown in Lansing. 

“We have to do everything we can to first avoid the shutdown and make sure it doesn’t come to that,” Meagan Elliott, president and CEO of the nonprofit Belle Isle Conservancy, told Planet Detroit Thursday. 

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials who oversee Detroit’s island park say deep cuts proposed for the agency’s budget could reverse improvements made on the island, which has received $144 million in investment in the last decade. 

The DNR’s Parks and Recreation Division would lose $10.2 million in funding and 136 full-time employees if the budget passed by the GOP majority in the House of Representatives becomes law, said Kristen Kosick, chief of the Parks and Recreation Division. 

Belle Isle is funded out of the division’s general fund, Kosick told the Belle Isle Park Advisory Committee, and the cuts would impact the island.

“It could result in fewer rangers, increased response time, and impact visitor experience.”

The House budget would slash 63 full-time DNR law enforcement positions, or a reduction of 22% statewide, Kosick said. This could cause delayed, reduced, or a lack of response to complaints and requests from the public, she said.

DNR law enforcement cuts could also impact search and rescue efforts, lifesaving, resolution of conflicts between humans and wildlife, and the ability of rangers to do proactive patrols and enforcement, Kosick said.

She noted that law enforcement staffing is mandated in the state’s Belle Isle lease agreement with the city.


Lauren McKague, left; Han McKague; and CJ McKague outside the Belle Isle Aquarium Thursday, Sept. 18. Photo by Dustin Blitchok/Planet Detroit.

CJ McKague, who came from Whitmore Lake Thursday to visit Belle Isle with her children Han and Lauren, said she’s disappointed to hear of the impact the state budget could have on the park.

“We were just discussing on the way in, the revival of Belle Isle since the state took over — they injected energy, money, and love into this place,” she said as the family walked up to the aquarium.

“Obviously what needs to happen is we need to stop worrying so much about the politics of how things are going to appear,” McKague said, adding that politicians are focusing on appearances rather than being effective. 

“It has real-world effects and consequences.”

Cole Pachucki, a spokesperson for the State Budget Office, said negotiations are ongoing and officials are hopeful a deal will be in place by the deadline. 

“While we have begun contingency planning for different scenarios, it’s still too early in the process to determine what a shutdown would look like,” he said. “Our focus remains on enacting a full budget that protects Michiganders and our economy.”

The Oct. 1 budget deadline is when Michigan’s new fiscal year begins.

MORE PLANET DETROIT REPORTING

Belle Isle visitor says closure ‘would be terrible’

Belle Isle receives $2.7 million annually for operations and $1.25 million for capital outlay, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer requested a slight increase for Belle Isle operations in her proposed budget, the DNR’s Kosick said during Thursday’s park advisory committee meeting.

DNR spokesperson Ed Golder said the budget passed by the House would cut $2.7 million from the department’s general fund budget, which supports Belle Isle.

Tom Bissett, the DNR’s urban district supervisor who manages the island, said nearly all of Belle Isle’s infrastructure improvements are funded by federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars.

“We’ve been in a very different mode under the umbrella of the ARPA period,” he said. 

The proposed DNR budget cuts would result in decreases in staffing and a reduction in services on Belle Isle, he said, adding that some of Belle Isle’s operations are funded by the Parks and Recreation Division budget, including his position. 

Ninety-seven percent of Michigan’s parks dollars are self-funded through revenue from sources such as the recreation passport and licenses, Bissett told Planet Detroit, adding that general fund dollars comprise 3% of the Parks and Recreation Division budget.

“The reason that’s important is because Belle Isle falls under the general funding category.”

Committee member Michael Curis asked whether an operating statement exists for Belle Isle.

“To not have any numbers — it’s pretty difficult as a board member to sit here and make decisions, because we don’t know what those numbers are,” he said.

The Belle Isle Conservancy’s Elliott proposed bringing together stakeholders that are located off the island, such as the Detroit Zoological Society, operator of the Belle Isle Nature Zoo, and the Detroit Historical Society, operator of the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, to determine the island’s “base line” and assets.

Ypsilanti resident Patrick Shepard spoke with Planet Detroit as he left the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory Thursday. 

“We won’t be happy. We have a lot of good memories here,” he said of a possible Belle Isle closure during a state government shutdown.

K. Harris, of Southfield, was visiting the aquarium. 

“That would be terrible if that happened. This is a treasure to the city and state,” he said. 

Carolyn Harrington, who lives on Detroit’s east side, said she comes to Belle Isle at least once a week. 

 “I don’t want it to shut down. I love this here park.”

🗳️ Civic next steps: How you can get involved

Why it matters
⚡ The Michigan budget funds the state’s various departments including support for environmental programs and public health services.

Who’s making civic decisions
🏛️ Members of the Michigan House and Michigan Senate need to pass a budget, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has to sign it, for it to be adopted.

How to take civic action now

What to watch for next
🗓️ Democrats and Republicans will need to negotiate in order to pass a budget by Oct. 1 in order to avoid a state government shutdown.

Civic impact
🌍 The state budget has consequences for how billions of dollars of public money are spent, including the operation of state parks like Belle Isle.

Dustin Blitchok brings extensive editorial leadership experience, having served as an editor at Benzinga and Metro Times, and got his start in journalism at The Oakland Press. As a longtime Detroit resident and journalist, he has covered a wide range of public interest stories, including criminal justice and government accountability.